Due to recent advances in technology, computer users are now able to enjoy many features that provide an improved user experience, such as playing various media and multimedia content on personal, laptop, or handheld computers, as well as cellular phones and other portable media devices. For example, most computers today are able to play compact discs (CDs) and have an internet connection capable of streaming and downloading audio and video so users can listen to their favorite media while working on their computers. Many computers are also equipped with digital versatile disc (DVD) drives enabling users to watch movies.
In some multimedia environments, a computer has access to a computer-readable medium storing media files such as Moving Picture Experts Group audio layer-3 (MP3) files and WINDOWS MEDIA technologies audio (WMA) and video files. The computer typically organizes the media files into playlists when the compressed media files are played on the computer.
Conventionally, users must expend considerable time and energy to build a playlist of media items (e.g., video files, music files, photos, etc.) of any complexity. Media items must be individually selected and added to each playlist. In addition to the effort required, users may also have difficulty constructing a playlist including each of the media items they desire. For example, remembering the name of each particular media item (or artist, genre, creator, creation date, style, etc.) to include in a playlist is difficult. This inability to recall each desirable media item can lead to user-created playlists that include only a few common media items familiar to the user. Such playlists can be mundane, repetitive, and generally not pleasing, even to the creator.
The issue of recalling media items of interest is exacerbated with the era of online media item libraries, such as for music and other audio, movies and other video, among others. For example, a single user can easily subscribe to a media service having over a million available media items. Such a subscription simply provides too many choices for a single user to review and consider for a playlist.
Beyond inadequate time and inability to recall particular media items, other issues may also discourage particular users from authoring their own playlists. For example, a user who is not particularly computer savvy may not realize such a subgroup of his particular collection or multiple collections (i.e., a library or libraries) may be created. Others may simply not have the knowledge about the media to make such a playlist. Such users still have preferences about media and display strong opinions when exposed to different media items, even though they have no idea who wrote or is performing such items. Broadcast radio caters to such listeners by programming the listening experience according to a particular listening experience, or genre, such as easy listening, jazz, rhythm and blues, country, rock and roll, etc.
Unfortunately, these issues are not addressed by any conventional system. Conventional techniques provide only limited amounts of assistance to the user in creating playlists, such as sorting by media type or artist. Such conventional techniques provide no automatic playlist formation based upon user behavior or simple user feedback. Conventional techniques also require disclosure of much personal information from the user to a server so that the server can build the playlist. Because such information is personal, it is more desirable to retain such user information at the client, rather than the server. There is a need, therefore, for a system or method capable of generating a playlist of media items tailored to a user's needs in a more automatic way on the user's device, while retaining the direct, or indirect, control of the user. In other words, the system or method assists the user in media item (e.g., music, video, etc.) selection. Accordingly, a solution that enables playlist creation based upon simple user actions occurring during the playback of media items to automatically update the user playlist is desired.